Had a great think tank meeting with businesses in Longford town last Tuesday 15th Feb presenting our pilot initiative “National Customer Service Awards”. The groups were really interested in the project and very enthusiastic about making this a community project so that all parties, including customers, can get involved.

Longford was chosen as our pilot town because it really is the heart of the midlands and has a diverse range of businesses. We hope to have 30 businesses from the town sign up to the initiative so that we can promote Longford as our pilot town nationally.

The main aim of this initiative is to promote and reward Customer Service in towns throughout the country. The initiative which will be akin to Tidy Towns with on-going checks on customer service levels and in turn awards for towns with the best level of customer service.

Seamus Butler president of the Longford Chamber of commerce commented ‘I believe this a golden opportunity for Longford to mark itself out in the region as a first mover in retail excellence. Provided we get sufficient buy-in from as many Longford businesses as possible, this could lead to a focused marketing of Longford as a preferred destination for shopping and doing business. I urge all Longford businesses that have direct customer interaction to get involved”.

For more information on this initiative and to register your interested please contact Cyril Dunworth of Total Training in Longford @ 087 2056714 or Brenda Farrell of Total Training at 087 6837 922.

Ok I know we’ve not been blogging...but we’ve been busy selling and organising our marketing activity since the Autumn. We got a great response when our direct sales team went out to retailers and we’ve listened to what retails have to say. Lots of retailers told us they were struggling...in fact we estimate that approx 20% of main street retailers we visited said that if they didn’t have an excellent Christmas they would not be around in 2011. Obviously the budget didn’t encourage consumer confidence and in addition the heavy snow in December meant that we didn’t spend too long in the shops when we managed to make it out. The impact for the retail sector in Ireland; a decrease in the volume of retail sales by 3.1% in December 2010 when compared with December 2009

So where too for the Irish retail sector? Well for those that are left standing surely their ambition will be to have customers that come into their store increase their spend while they are there and make their shopping experience so pleasant that customers will want to come back for more. Does that sound like something you would like for your retail business? If it is then talk to us...we may have a solution for your store...if not then tell us what you would like...we’ll be listening! In the meantime I leave with something that is bound to inspire and motivate you to keep going…..check out this piece about Kanturk in Co Cork. If they can do it then so can you! http://examiner.ie/ireland/lifeblood-of-kanturk-is-diversity-137897.html

Well its nearly here...our sales team are on the road from Tuesday talking directly with retailers so watch out for them in a shop near you soon! Liz in ISME did a countdown eshot today “Coming Soon to your PC” and it got a great response...well done Liz on the catchy subject heading! We’ve been looking forward to seeing how people respond to the offering of online learning so today’s response was really encouraging. We really want to get feedback on the concept...what people like about the idea/content/delivery and what they’re not so keen on...we’ll be listening! A project like this will work when all parties get involved...how do you think Customer Service Training will help your business? The retailer sector is such an important part of our economy so let’s revive it...lets drive professionalism in the sector by up skilling staff and ensuring customers receive excellent in service so they’ll be back for more!

We’re delighted to announce that together with ISME, the Irish Small & Medium Enterprises Association, we’re launching a world-class on-line certified training programme for retailers and their staff. This programme provides retailers throughout the country the opportunity to improve their retail skills and gain certification, without taking time away from work.

At the launch, Minister for Trade and Commerce, Billy Kelleher, T.D., commented, “In a period when up-skilling is essential and time is scarce, this programme offers all retailers and their staff the opportunity of gaining world-class certified skills.”

“We’re using leading edge technology in developing and delivering this programme while at the same time making the content relevant to the local SME retailers of Ireland” added Brenda Farrell, M.D., Total Training.

Mark Fielding, Chief Executive, ISME, said that “ISME Skillnet is delighted to provide funding for this certified training, which is critical to the improvement of skills in retail SMEs - the corner stone of many communities.

In addition, the unemployed can participate free of charge; this includes anyone on job seekers allowance/ benefit, even if they are working on reduced hours ”. ‘This initiative for the retail trade is opportune, timely and cost effective, allowing staff to upskill in an innovative and flexible manner, which will help retain staff and improve the prospects of the unemployed,’ concluded Fielding.

Since last writing we’ve been reflecting on the change process individuals and organisatons need to go through to consider Online Training. So no matter how cost effective or time efficient we tell you Online Training has proven to be for many organisations, there is no getting away from the fact that its a big mindset change for many people.

We know change isn’t always easy and very often change will solve one issue only to appear to create others. However if change is managed correctly it will be for the better.

E-learning is a new way of learning and there can be no doubt that organisations and individuals will find that new way of learning different. Note we say different not difficult! In actual fact it makes training easier e.g. no travel time, accessable anywhere and anytime you have an Internet connection, its self pased learning so you can set the speed at which you cover the material and it gives you a platform from which you can engage with other learners at a pace and time that suits you.

So what can we do to help you through the change from traditional training methods to Online Learning? Well we think we can start at the beginning with you...lets talk when your thinking of making the change. We can help with initial course plans and content so that the training delivered is exactly how you want it to be. We can publish it online for you as well as getting involved in the recruitment and promotion process, which is vital in helping people through the change in delivery format. We’ll provide email backup and reminders to encourage people with their studies as well as assisting with evaluation when they have completed their training.